Water Rocket Forum

Welcome to the Water Rocket Forum, sponsored by The Water Rocket Achievement World Record Association.

The largest, most sophisticated and ground breaking group supporting you, the serious water rocket flyer! Whether you are a beginner or an expert, the WRA2 has something for everyone.

A water rocket is a type of model rocket using water as its reaction mass. The pressure vessel (the engine of the rocket) is constructed from thin plastic or other non metallic materials (usually a used plastic soft drink bottle) weighing 1,500 grams or less. The water is forced out by compressed air. It is an example of Newton's third law of motion.

Are water rockets considered high power. They usually put out more than 320 newtons of thrust or 71.4 pound seconds of thrust. A lot of them such as Air Commands huge new rocket weighs more than 1500 grams. The fuel (water and air, weigh comes primarily from the water) weights more than 125 grams on most rockets. Can you tell me are they now considered high power because they are water. Does the FAA care how high you launch water rockets. And does the NAR recognize the WRA2. < is a very important question. Please try to answer all my questions (sorry I have so many) but they are all important to me. See my signature. :2011B: XT1

Water Rocket Expert
I'm 18
Maryland"Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new." -Albert Einstein

Water Rocket Expert wrote:Are water rockets considered high power. They usually put out more than 320 newtons of thrust or 71.4 pound seconds of thrust.

Water rockets are different than pyro and thus the “definition” of “high power will be different than pyro.
Since water rockets that follow WRA2 rules contain no combustibles and no metal structural materials, and the dry weight is only 1500 grams, they fall into the low regulation category (think of them like over-the-counter toy shop Estes Rockets) that most countries allow (the FAA is only for the USA). Different locations have different altitude caps that you must adhere to (for example, most countries do not allow them to fly higher than a certain amount the closer you are in proximity to an airport.) Local laws may even take higher precedence than national ones, so you really need to check he laws where you live.

Water Rocket Expert wrote:A lot of them such as Air Commands huge new rocket weighs more than 1500 grams.

Maybe you should ask him if he has a high power certification and airspace clearance when he launches it. If you witness law breaking posted to the internet regarding water rockets, that doesn't make it legal. Often the perpetrators seek notoriety or attention, so they post videos to boast about themselves breaking the law (street racing for example) and they get spotted by the local constabulary and eventually get prosecuted. Because air-command website attempts to "teach others" with no disclaimers present indicating that the materials and methods may not be legal, that site is “not recommended”. There are plenty of other water rocket sites out there that do teach compliant construction techniques, it is recommended you seek one out and go there instead.

Water Rocket Expert wrote:The fuel (water and air, weigh comes primarily from the water) weights more than 125 grams on most rockets. Can you tell me are they now considered high power because they are water.

Since the “fuel” leaves the rocket close to the ground, it’s weight is not counted towards the weight of the flying rocket. For pyro, it was fairly easy to limit the performance by limiting the weight of the “engine”. For water rockets where the entire rocket is the “engine” this is accomplished through limiting the weight of the entire rocket to 1500 grams. (which also keeps the rocket legal to fly without a certification from the NAR).

Water Rocket Expert wrote:Does the FAA care how high you launch water rockets.

Only if the rocket weighs more than 1500 grams, is constructed using metal parts or you are launching near an airport. For those a NAR “high power” certification and airspace clearance would be required.

Water Rocket Expert wrote:And does the NAR recognize the WRA2. < is a very important question.

The NAR and the WRA2 are separate organizations. The NAR is for pyro and the WRA2 is for water rockets. If we were part of the NAR, we would be collecting NAR dues from you.

NAR is not a regulatory agency, they are a sanctioning body (like NBA, or
NFL) and they exist to create competition rules and safety guidelines that are structured around the U.S. FAA (an actual U.S. Government Regulatory
Agency) regulations for model rockets. The WRA2 does the same, only with specific focus on the unique characteristics and safety protocols needed for water rockets. The two are different competition sanctioning bodies (like NASCAR relates to Formula One Racing) with no government regulatory powers.
The actual laws are up to the local/national Government to decide, and supersede any WRA2 or NAR rules.

Water Rocket Expert wrote:Oh I thought maybe the dragster competitoin may be the easiest but still be a challenge. I just want answers that is why I ask alot of questions and am new to the WRA2.

I would recommend the Unreinforced Bottle World Record Competition as there are no entries yet and the first team to fly a class legal rocket (no matter the latitude) would be the top dog (until someone else beat you or you fly higher). That competiton also would be easier on your budget. For the dragster competition, you would need to beat the existing records.

Water Rocket Expert wrote:Does the NAR reconize you as a rocket assosiation or do they even know about you? What if my rocket weights more than 1500 grams?

The NAR is not a government agency.

They are an association on the same level as the WRA2 which administrates pyro rocketry. Naturally they are older and larger so that might be where you are getting the impression that they need to recognize us. They only deal with pyro and not water rockets.

Think of it this way:
NAR = pyro rocketry in the US
Tripoli = Pyro rocketry in other countries
WRA2 = Water rocketry worldwide

All 3 must comply with national/local governmental regulations.

Hopefully that helps you understand.

Lisa Walker,Forum Administrator. The Water Rocket Achievement World Record Association